The E-Mod Abomination is Back.

In reply to loosecannon:

In reply to Toyman01:

Might be time to make your own.

Just need some sandbags, an oven, hot pads, a mold and some perspex to play with.

In reply to Toyman01:

A quick bit of Googling seems to indicate nobody is offering fiberglass Spitfire body parts commercially right now, but I have seen them for sale over the years. Usually one-offs or from years ago when Spitfire race cars were more common. I'd do a search on eBay and save it for a few months. Something is likely to turn up eventually. Given the limited market, it will probably sell for cheap as well, although you may have to travel for it.

Of course, the other option is to build a mold off the existing bonnet and DIY.

If it were me racing a small British car in EM, I would sort the suspension, engine and aero (in that order). Once I got to aero, I would get the splitter, spoiler and diffuser done then make my own headlight covers. I think it would be as easy as making a sheet metal form then laying plexi over the form and sticking in an oven for a bit.

The problem is not the covers, it's the edges where they must attach and blend in. The openings are not just holes scooped out of what started out as a smooth curved surface, they are 'styled'.
The headlight structures are zinc castings that bolt into the hood sheet metal.
A better solution would be to replace those castings with ones having integrated covers.
This would be a perfect project for a 3D printer.
Scan the OEM casting to capture the interface and mounting to the hood structure,
and then design the replacement structure with CAD, for 3D printing in plastic.
Bonus: The left & right side are perfectly symmetrical, so you only have to design one.
The CAD software is perfectly capable of mirroring the design.

The parts from the Netherlands showed up. I installed the "motorsport" gasket, and the #350 high flow float valve, set the float level a little on the high side and buttoned up the carburetor. I also drilled out the fuel inlet fitting and banjo bolt from .156 to .187 just because I could. Next up was a new air cleaner. Apparently there needs to be at least 1.5" of clearance above the air horns for the clean air flow to the carburetor. I had a little less than that. So I ordered and installed a 6" air cleaner to replace the 3" that was on it.

Another issue, but not necessarily a performance one. I have hated the plug wire set up on this car since I bought it. No matter what you did, they always looked messy. The wires were at least 11 years old and may well have been used then, so it got a new set of much neater wires.

Before:

After:

More progress.

First up this afternoon was covering up the ugly that was under the dash pad. I considered just remounting the pad, but it is ridiculously heavy. Almost 10 pounds. I had some .025 bright finish aluminum diamond sheet that was too discolored to be used for much, so I built a cover out of that.

The ugly.

A little cardboard, some skill saw treatment and grinding and painting got me this. I didn't want the industrial look, so I'm using it upside down.

Installed.

The visibility problem is solved.

Next up was the headlights. The trim, buckets and bulbs are right at 15 pounds. I really don't want to put them back on, but nobody makes a set of covers for this car. I considered just covering the holes with sheet metal, but that would look pretty hacked up, so I'm going to try my hand at making a set.

The problem.

That's where I've stopped. My plan is cover this with epoxy and glass cloth and paint it. I'm not sure I like it. Worse, I'm not sure I can duplicate it on the other side. I'm going to stare at it for a while and see what comes to me.

Um-looks like a "Headlight"

I'm liking it. I've been thinking of something similar but wasn't able to visualize a technique well enough to try. I like yours​.

I like what you did with the headlights. A thin skin of fiberglass and a little bodywork to smooth them out and it will look awesome.

I like the new foam mockup. But id be the guy to use headlight stickers just to mess with people.

In reply to Dusterbd13:

There is a good chance that will happen.

I got my fake headlights here and they look very real http://www.fivestarbodies.com/store/index.php?p=product&id=406

In reply to loosecannon:

Thanks for the link.

May I propose a different solution?

In reply to ¯_(ツ)_/¯:

Brilliant!

This popped on on Facebook today: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=1481867045177422&set=gm.10154174458346853&type=3&theater

Fiberglass GT6 nose - $150 in Delaware: "Anyone need a Fiberglass front for a GT6???? $150.00 please come get this! It has a couple cracks but nothing that cant be fixed."

In reply to Ian F:

Wow! Thanks! I've sent him a message and requested to join the group so I can comment on the post. Hopefully he will see it and respond.

In reply to Ian F:

You sir, are the man. Thank You for the link. Contact has been made and I'm making arrangement for a run to Delaware the weekend of the 22nd.

The beast in question, for those that are wondering.

So, how much weight loss will there be? The fenders on the amc are surprisingly light. I can't image a British sports car could be heavier.

It should be 40+ pounds.

Cool. I saw someone post they were interested and thought the profile pic looked familiar.

In reply to Toyman01:

Wow!

Is that mostly fender, hood, or bumper?

In reply to Dusterbd13:

That replaces all the sheet metal in front of the windshield. It will also allow me to remove the huge hood hinge assemblies. It might save me more than 40 pounds.

I had to go back and look to realize that it was a 1 piece STEEL front end before.

Now that i see that, and reread about how much the headlights and such weigh, im not suprised at 40+.

Ought to really help with weight distribution and center of gravity as well.